


Once More with Feeling

by lilactreesinwinter



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Marriage Proposal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-23
Updated: 2017-01-23
Packaged: 2018-09-19 12:16:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,584
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9440027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lilactreesinwinter/pseuds/lilactreesinwinter
Summary: Dan has ring and a plan: he will propose to Phil while they are in Los Angeles. But every time he tries, something goes wrong.Excerpt:When Phil texted from the lobby that he was on his way up, Dan waited by the door in anticipation. But as soon as he opened it, Phil almost fell into his arms with exhaustion. Phil managed a weak smile. “It’s heavenly to see you, but I’m knackered. Can I get a quick shower and just curl up in bed with you?” “Of course,” answered Dan. Nothing would suit him better. But the ring was heavy in his pocket.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by [this prompt from space-ace16 via phanfic on Tumblr](http://phanfic.tumblr.com/post/152753223822).
> 
> [Originally posted on Tumblr](https://phinalphantasy7.tumblr.com/post/152865673409/once-more-with-feeling) on 7 November 2016.

Phil had texted his safe arrival in Florida, the DAPGOOSE video was uploaded, and Dan was sat on his sofa holding a small box in his hands. Inside was the ring that he had commissioned. It was a wide band of yellow gold, inlaid with lapis lazuli—deep blue with golden flecks of pyrite, and inset with a scattering of tourmalines—blue stones with a touch of green. The effect was even better than Dan had hoped, capturing Phil’s eyes of blue mixed with yellow and green.

For the ring was for Phil, of course. Dan wasn’t sure if Phil would want to wear it, or if it even made sense to wear as an engagement ring. But Dan needed a beautiful ring with which to propose. They had been so very busy for the past couple of years, and the year 2016 had seen one amazing accomplishment after another. But Dan needed to add one more accomplishment—the most important one—before the clock struck midnight on New Year’s Eve. He was determined to be married to Phil Lester.

Dan had known for seven years that he wanted to be with Phil forever. And they had been together all this time—growing up and growing closer, sharing a home and a career. They had become more comfortable balancing their public and private lives, and both were happier than they had ever been. Maybe Dan would mess all that up by asking to put a ring on it? And if it was something that Phil actually wanted, why hadn’t Phil already proposed himself? These questions made Dan nervous. But it was already November, and if he was going to be married by New Year’s Eve, he would have to act soon. This meant bringing the ring with him to Los Angeles, where in a few days he was to meet up with Phil before their American DAPGOOSE event. It meant carrying the ring in his pocket, finding a time to propose, and following through!

The Los Angeles hotel room was nicely appointed and even had a little balcony for enjoying the ridiculously hot autumn day. Or, Dan hoped, the pleasantly warm autumn evening. He had perused the room service menu and had chosen an excellent red wine to accompany dinner. On the balcony. Where he would propose to Phil. As soon as Phil got here!

Unfortunately, an early snowstorm in the middle of the (absurdly large) country had delayed flights from Florida. Dan had become more dejected with each texted update from Phil. The plane was finally allowed to leave just before curfew, and Phil would be arriving hours late. Dan laid in some snacks hoping Phil would still want to sit out on the balcony for a bit. When Phil texted from the lobby that he was on his way up, Dan waited by the door in anticipation. But as soon as he opened it, Phil almost fell into his arms with exhaustion. Phil managed a weak smile. “It’s heavenly to see you, but I’m knackered. Can I get a quick shower and just curl up in bed with you?” “Of course,” answered Dan. Nothing would suit him better. But the ring was heavy in his pocket.

While Phil was busy with his laptop the next morning, Dan was frantically texting. They were scheduled for a late brunch with Cat at yet another cafe serving gargantuan pancake breakfasts, as per tradition. Dan was asking her in as roundabout a way as possible where he could take Phil afterwards that would be beautiful yet private. After some teasing about why he might make such a request, Cat was explaining how to get to a relatively secluded beach near the restaurant—one that was hard enough to access that there was a chance at privacy. Dan was wondering how to get Phil to go along with such a suggestion, since a walk along the beach wasn’t the kind of thing he and Phil generally did. But he remembered that during their long US tour, they actually went outside quite a bit, so maybe Phil wouldn’t find it so strange.

They stuffed themselves with gooey-topped pancakes and lingered over coffee while they caught up with Cat. When—as pre-arranged—Cat announced that she had an appointment to get to, Dan said, “Hey, Phil, let’s go for a walk on the beach. I checked it out and there’s one not far from here. We’ve been to LA loads of times, but we haven’t got outside here as much as we have in some other cities.” When Phil looked dubious, Dan added, “And look, I’ve even got some sun cream with me!” Phil laughed to see his boyfriend so enthusiastic and answered, “Yeah, let’s go for it.”

The beach, when they reached it, was indeed secluded, and lovely as they walked along the high tide mark in the late-afternoon sunshine. They chatted amiably about bits of life that had happened during the days they had been apart. Dan surreptitiously patted his pocket from time to time. They reached a spot on the sand where someone had arranged some large logs of driftwood, and Dan gestured for them to sit. He turned toward Phil, and just as he was about to launch into his prepared speech, they heard unmistakable cries of “Dan! Phil!” Dan swore colourfully. “Dan!” exclaimed Phil. “Smile!” Dan managed to plaster on a smile just as two girls excitedly ran up to them, their phones at the ready. The fans left again after their selfies and a few pleasantries, but the mood was broken. Phil looked at Dan quizzically. “Shall we head back? It will be dark soon anyway. Maybe we can go out to a nice bar. It looks as though you could use a drink.”

Back at the hotel, Phil asked the concierge to suggest a place nearby with cocktails, and it turned out there was somewhere within walking distance. Dan had his hand thrust into his pocket and clamped tightly around the ring. He mentally jettisoned the artful proposal speech in favour of something short and sweet. He needed to be ready to seize the moment, since the right moment was apparently much more elusive than he had hoped. He jumped as Phil gently touched his elbow. “Dan, what are you muttering about?” “Er, nothing. Here we are!”

The bar was very upscale and full of businessmen (and a few businesswomen). Dan relaxed a bit. It was unlikely that any of the clientele were fans—maybe if they snagged that dark corner table, he’d be able to get this proposal accomplished without anyone noticing.

Phil brought two different exotic cocktails to the table where Dan was sat. “I thought we could share them. They both sounded really good.” He brushed his fingers against Dan’s as he handed him a glass, and smiled at him fondly. Dan took a deep breath, set his glass to the side of the table, and reached into his pocket.

“Phil—” Dan felt something at the edge of his hearing. A weird rumbling was coming toward him. Dishes began to rattle and the floor vibrated beneath his feet for long surreal seconds. Then with a sharp thump, the rumbling rolled off in the opposite direction. And then the lights went out just as Dan’s glass, which had shimmied to the edge of the table, crashed to the floor.

Dan leapt to his feet. “Are you bloody shitting me?!?” His voice rang out over the general hubbub. In the confusion and the dark, Phil wrapped his arms around his lover. “Hush! It’s okay! That was an earthquake!” Phil sounded really excited.

“Folks, nothing to worry about,” called out the bartender. “Stay put and we’ll get some candles lit. The power should be back on soon—it often cuts off momentarily when we get a little shake like this.” Most of the patrons settled back down in their seats, unfazed, but Phil wanted to return to the hotel and get out his laptop to properly look up news of this exciting event.

“Dan, we’ve finally been in a real earthquake! That was really cool, wasn’t it? And a little scary, of course.” Phil paused. “You weren’t scared, were you?” Dan flapped his arms vaguely. “No, no, not scared. Carry on.” He usually enjoyed when Phil got so hyped, but right now he just couldn’t believe his bad fortune. Was the universe really so set against this proposal?

By the time they got to their room, the power was back on. Phil unlocked the door and went straight to his bag to pull out his laptop, not even bothering to sit down. Dan stopped behind him, just inside the door. He was still feeling phantom earthquake tremors. All eloquence had deserted him. He thrust his hand in his pocket, put the ring in the flat of his palm, and held it out towards Phil’s back. Really fast, before anything else could happen, he said, “Phil, please marry me.”

Phil went still. He turned slowly around, his eyes on Dan’s face, a face looking at him full of hope and frustration and love. His eyes dropped to the beautiful ring lying in Dan’s palm and back to Dan’s deep, dark eyes. “Say that again?” he breathed.

“Philip Michael Lester, will you marry me?”

“Daniel James Howell, of course I will marry you. And let’s make sure it happens before the year is out—so 2016 will be the best year we’ve ever had.”


End file.
